High impedance vs low impedance Headphones

iako

New member
Hi all,
I'm looking to buy a new set of headphones as I'm experiencing a buzzing noise in my left headphone on certain sub bass frequencies.
I have been looking at the Beyerdynamic DT 990 Pro (I'm going for open back cause my current ones are closed and I want to try out the difference) but I have a question: I keep hearing that high impedance headphones will require amplification in order to work at their best - now, what level of amplification are we talking about?

Let's say I did get the 990 PRO 250 Ohms, would I encounter any issues using them on an entry level audio interface such as a Focusrite Scarlett 212? Or would the built in amplifier from the interface be enough to sustain the high impedance?

I'm looking for headphones with a good sub bass quality as I'm going to be mixing predominantly electronic and hip hop/RnB music, so I'd appreciate any other model recommendations and advice. Thanks !!!
 
Last edited:

Uh, [MENTION=204982]iako[/MENTION] (OP) has a bus powered 2i2. I read that as having a 200Ω (max impedance) recommendation. From that link:

For all 1st Gen, 2nd Gen, and 3rd Gen Bus-Powered Scarlett interfaces (Solo, 2i2, 2i4, and 4i4), iTrack Solo and Saffire 6 USB look for headphones with a maximum impedance of 200 ohms.

Even if it supports it, it still requires more power to drive to the same audio level.

Now, I did have 250Ω DT770s on my Firewire but AC-powered Saffire Pro, and it was Ok, but it's a lot better with a headphone amp. If you don't want the extra piece of hardware, I'd shoot for 80Ω max to use with a 2i2.
 
Going up to 250 Ohms from the usual 8/16 just means turning the volume up. My usual phones volume on the spare amp I use in the studio for headphones is 4. If I plug in 250 Ohm headphones the rough volume setting for the same loudness is about 7. It causes no issues at all bar NOT being able to use passive splitters with mixed impedance headphones where the high impedance ones are too quiet.
 
Back
Top